Looking Glass Rock

One of the great views from the Blue Ridge Parkway is of Looking Glass Rock.  Every time we’ve stopped at the overlook at milepost 417 with Looking Glass Rock so prominent in the distance, we say we’re going to hike that someday.  We finally made a plan to hike to the top of Looking Glass Rock.

This massive rock gets its name from the way the sun is reflected from the rock face when water freezes on the surface.  They say it looks like a mirror.  Maybe we’ll get a chance to see it in winter sometime.

As we were coming down from the Blue Ridge Parkway on US 276 we stopped at Looking Glass Falls.  Since this waterfall is right by the relatively busy US highway, it gets a lot of visitors.  We were lucky there were only about a dozen folks there when we stopped.  A stairway goes down from the road to the lower level for good views of the falls from several points.  The falls drops about 60 feet into a pool deep enough for swimming.  No one was brave enough to be in that cold water when we were there, but there were several climbing on the rocks just at the edge of the water.

The Looking Glass Rock trailhead is located on Fish Hatchery Road just off of US 276 not so far from the Cradle of Forestry and only a couple miles from the falls.  This is a popular trail and the parking lot is large enough to accommodate several cars.

The hike begins gently by way of switchbacks for about the first mile.  The trail is wide and well maintained.  When the switchbacks came to an end we enjoyed a relatively flat trail for a short distance.  Then the real climbing began; up and up to gain the rest of the 1500 feet of elevation to the top.

Just over 2 miles into our hike we came to a large, flat rock to our left.  This is the helipad used by search and rescue teams.  It’s marked with a large white “H” near the center.  Any exposed rock face such as this is an invitation to rock climbers and Looking Glass Rock has its fair share.  Accidents happen all to frequently.  Since we are hiking up the “back” side of the mountain, we didn’t see any climbers.

After a short break on the helipad, we continue our trek to the top.  I keep saying the “top” and that’s how I think of it, but the granite rock face we’re headed to is actually below the summit.  About mile 3 we actually reach the highest point on our hike--an overused campsite without any views.  The trail continues across this area and then down for about a tenth of a mile to the exposed granite at the edge of the mountain.

We venture out only a few feet to get a good look around and take in the views, but the rock slopes quickly and we find our lunch spot closer to the trees.  From our vantage point, we can see the cars driving along the Blue Ridge Parkway in spots along the ridge above and can see the lookout where we have stood so often looking down on this big rock.

After a leisurely lunch break, we pack up to retrace our steps to the car.

This is a popular hike and there were several on the mountain with us.  Unfortunately, many try to save a few steps by cutting the switchbacks and the terrain surrounding the trail is scarred and unsightly.  Still, the view from the top is awesome, so I guess I can ignore some of the destruction.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for tagging along.

Mount Pisgah Trail

Mount Pisgah (5721 ft), for which the Pisgah National Forest is named, was our hike for today.

The name “Pisgah” comes from the Bible.  It was atop Mount Pisgah that God revealed to “Promised Land” to Moses.  This is not that Mount Pisgah.  There seems to be some controversy on how this mountain got its name.  However, both stories credit the naming of the mountain to ministers who looked out over the rich land surrounding the mountain and were reminded of the Moses story of the Promised Land.

Mount Pisgah

During the late 1890s some 125,000 acres of land, including Mount Pisgah, was acquired by George Vanderbilt.  Down the mountain from Mount Pisgah, near Asheville, is the Biltmore Estate, the home of George Vanderbilt.  In addition to the Vanderbilt mansion down below, they also had a hunting lodge on the ridge about a mile from where the Pisgah Inn is located today.  A seventeen mile trail led from the Biltmore Estate to the Buck Springs hunting lodge.  The lodge was rustic compared to the mansion in Asheville, but what it lacked in marble it made up for in having, in the late 1890s, hot and cold running water. That trail is still open today and is called the Shut-In Trail.  Of course, the hunting lodge is long gone.

Our hiking friend, Sharon, had recommended a hiking guidebook, Hiking the Carolina Mountains, by Danny Bernstein.  This was the first hike we have done which was described in that book.  Danny’s route was up the Mount Pisgah Trail to the WLOS TV tower on the summit and back for a 2.6 mile round-trip hike.

The Mount Pisgah Trail begins at the “back” of the very large Mount Pisgah Parking Area just off the Blue Ridge Parkway.  There are three trailheads at this parking lot--Mount Pisgah Trail, Mountains to the Sea Trail, and the Shut-In Trail.

View of Pisgah Inn from Mt Pisgah Trail

The Mount Pisgah Trail starts out on a very gentle incline.  The trail is wide and a little rocky, but not bad.  There are several viewpoints along the way, even with the trees in full leaf.  About halfway in our climb to the summit, the trail narrowed and became noticeably steeper and more rocky.  Also, by this time, the clouds were really beginning to move in.  We pressed on, however, knowing there’d be no views from the top.

View from the summit

They say you can see a whole lot of stuff from the summit on a clear day, including the Biltmore Estate.  Today wasn’t the day.  All we saw was fog.  We lingered a while on the observation platform then headed back down the mountain to the parking lot.

View from the site of the hunting lodge

But, that was only the first half of the hike.  Danny then sent us westward on the Mountains to the Sea trail to the site of the Vanderbilts’ hunting lodge at Buck Springs Gap.  The lodge is no longer there, but there is an information board with photos of what it once looked like.  There are also benches from which to enjoy the view.  The view wasn’t much better here than from the top.  Since the site of the lodge was so close to the parking lot, we came back on another morning for a better view.

View from the hunting lodge on a clearer day

Down the hill from the site of the lodge is the springhouse.  This is the only building which remains of the lodge complex.  By the way, after George Vanderbilt died, Edith spent most of her remaining years at the hunting lodge.

Stairs leading to the springhouse

After looking around there we continued westward on the Mountains to the Sea Trail to Pilot Rock Trail which led to the summit of Little Bald Mountain.  This once bald knob is mostly filled in with small trees and shrubs.

Thunder reminds us of pressing business so we hurry back to the car.  We missed the rain only by minutes.  We were back at the motor home for lunch and a quiet afternoon reading.

That’s all for today.  Thanks for tagging along.